maintenance
Usage
What are other ways to say maintenance?
Generally, maintenance refers to care or upkeep, as of machinery or property. But sometimes, maintenance refers to what is spent for the living of another: to provide for the maintenance or support of someone. Maintenance occasionally refers to the allowance itself provided for livelihood: They are entitled to a maintenance from this estate. Living and livelihood (a somewhat more formal word), both refer to what one earns to keep (oneself) alive, but are seldom interchangeable within the same phrase: to earn one's living; to threaten one's livelihood. “To make a living” suggests making just enough to keep alive, and is particularly frequent in the negative: You cannot make a living out of that. “To make a livelihood out of something” suggests rather making a business of it: to make a livelihood out of knitting hats.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
What’s more, many Advantage plans are structured as health maintenance organizations with limited choices of doctors, referral requirements for specialists, and prior authorization requirements for certain procedures.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
There are also sky-high maintenance and staffing expenses, which may inhibit even the wealthiest buyers.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 3, 2026
It added it had raised the graduate repayment threshold since coming into government for the first time since 2021, and brought back some targeted maintenance loans.
From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026
After its maiden flight in October 2025, the X-59 underwent a planned maintenance period before returning to flight testing in March 2026.
From Science Daily • Jun. 1, 2026
“No, I get it. History doesn’t care about maintenance men who work in apartment buildings or single moms who work three jobs. They’re just . . . what? Blips.”
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Vocabulary lists containing maintenance
Freak the Mighty
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Declaration of the Rights of Woman (1791)
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Franklin D. Roosevelt, "A Date That Will Live In Infamy" (1941)
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